316results about "X-ray tube target geometry" patented technology

A differential phase-contrast X-ray imaging system is provided. Along the direction of X-ray propagation, the basic components are X-ray tube, filter, object platform, X-ray phase grating, and X-ray detector. The system provides: 1) X-ray beam from parallel-arranged source array with good coherence, high energy, and wider angles of divergence with 30-50 degree. 2) The novel X-ray detector adopted in present invention plays dual roles of conventional analyzer grating and conventional detector. The basic structure of the detector includes a set of parallel-arranged linear array X-ray scintillator screens, optical coupling system, an area array detector or parallel-arranged linear array X-ray photoconductive detector. In this case, relative parameters for scintillator screens or photoconductive detector correspond to phase grating and parallel-arranged line source array, which can provide the coherent X-rays with high energy.

The present invention relates to an X-ray source for emitting a characteristic X-ray and a fluorescent X-ray analyzing apparatus using the X-ray source. A secondary target is arranged in superposition on a primary target. An electron beam generated by an electron gun enters the primary target, which passes and emits a continuous X-ray. The secondary target transmits and emits a characteristic X-ray excited by the continuous X-ray emitted from the primary target. The primary target and the secondary target are superposed one on the other, so that the continuous X-ray emitted from the primary target efficiently excites the secondary target thereby to efficiently generate the characteristic X-ray.

In a focus detector arrangement and method for an x-ray apparatus for generating projection or tomographic phase-contrast images of an examination subject, a beam of coherent x-rays is generated by an anode that has areas of different radiation emission characteristics arranged in bands thereon, that proceed parallel to grid lines of a phase grid that is used to generate the phase-contrast images.

X-ray generator devices and methods for operating the same that utilizes anodes comprising thin cylinders to generate characteristic X-ray spectra, which emerges from the cylinders axially, as an intense beam.

This disclosure presents systems for total reflection x-ray fluorescence measurements that have x-ray flux and x-ray flux density several orders of magnitude greater than existing x-ray technologies. These may therefore useful for applications such as trace element detection and / or for total-reflection fluorescence analysis. The higher brightness is achieved in part by using designs for x-ray targets that comprise a number of microstructures of one or more selected x-ray generating materials fabricated in close thermal contact with a substrate having high thermal conductivity. This allows for bombardment of the targets with higher electron density or higher energy electrons, which leads to greater x-ray brightness and therefore greater x-ray flux. The high brightness / high flux source may then be coupled to an x-ray reflecting optical system, which can focus the high flux x-rays to a spots that can be as small as one micron, leading to high flux density.

A Laminography system with x-ray source and a detector assembly. The x-ray source uses a narrow, deflected pencil beam to scan to a linear target. An x-ray cone beam detected by the detector assembly is produced where the electron beam strikes the target. The target is a layer of high-emitting material that is partitioned with narrow regions of low-emitting material, where the low flux intensity is sufficiently low to be easily distinguished from the flux intensity of the high-emitting material. The target may be constructed as a discontinuous layer of high-emitting material applied to a substrate of low-emitting material, or as strips of low-emitting material applied to a continuous layer of high-emitting material.

Periodic spatial patterns of x-ray illumination are used to gather information about periodic objects. The structured illumination may be created using the interaction of a coherent or partially coherent x-ray source with a beam splitting grating to create a Talbot interference pattern with periodic structure. The object having periodic structures to be measured is then placed into the structured illumination, and the ensemble of signals from the multiple illumination spots is analyzed to determine various properties of the object and its structures. Applications to x-ray absorption / transmission, small angle x-ray scattering, x-ray fluorescence, x-ray reflectance, and x-ray diffraction are all possible using the method of the invention.

An x-ray computed tomography system uses a broad area x-ray emitter and detector to allow both in plane and out of plane x-ray projections not restrained to spiral or helical scans.

This disclosure presents systems for total reflection x-ray fluorescence measurements that have x-ray flux and x-ray flux density several orders of magnitude greater than existing x-ray technologies. These may therefore useful for applications such as trace element detection and / or for total-reflection fluorescence analysis.The higher brightness is achieved in part by using designs for x-ray targets that comprise a number of microstructures of one or more selected x-ray generating materials fabricated in close thermal contact with a substrate having high thermal conductivity. This allows for bombardment of the targets with higher electron density or higher energy electrons, which leads to greater x-ray brightness and therefore greater x-ray flux.The high brightness / high flux source may then be coupled to an x-ray reflecting optical system, which can focus the high flux x-rays to a spots that can be as small as one micron, leading to high flux density.

In one embodiment, an X-ray source is provided that includes one or more electron emitters configured to emit one or more electron beams and one or more source targets configured to receive the one or more electron beams emitted by the one or more electron emitters and, as a result of receiving the one or more electron beams, to emit X-rays. Each source target of the X-ray source includes a first layer having one or more first materials; and a second layer in thermal communication with the first layer and having one or more second materials. The first layer is positioned closer to the one or more emitters than the second layer, the first material has a higher overall thermal conductivity than the second layer, and the second layer produces the majority of the X-rays emitted by the source target.

A differential phase-contrast X-ray imaging system is provided. Along the direction of X-ray propagation, the basic components are X-ray tube, filter, object platform, X-ray phase grating, and X-ray detector. The system provides: 1) X-ray beam from parallel-arranged source array with good coherence, high energy, and wider angles of divergence with 30-50 degree. 2) The novel X-ray detector adopted in present invention plays dual roles of conventional analyzer grating and conventional detector. The basic structure of the detector includes a set of parallel-arranged linear array X-ray scintillator screens, optical coupling system, an area array detector or parallel-arranged linear array X-ray photoconductive detector. In this case, relative parameters for scintillator screens or photoconductive detector correspond to phase grating and parallel-arranged line source array, which can provide the coherent X-rays with high energy.

In a focus detector arrangement and method for an x-ray apparatus for generating projection or tomographic phase-contrast images of an examination subject, a beam of coherent x-rays is generated by an anode that has areas of different radiation emission characteristics arranged in bands thereon, that proceed parallel to grid lines of a phase grid that is used to generate the phase-contrast images.

Systems for x-ray diffraction / scattering measurements having greater x-ray flux and x-ray flux density are disclosed. These are useful for applications such as material structural analysis and crystallography. The higher flux is achieved by using designs for x-ray targets comprising a number of microstructures of one or more selected x-ray generating materials fabricated in close thermal contact with a substrate having high thermal conductivity. This allows for bombardment of the targets with higher electron density or higher energy electrons, which leads to greater x-ray flux. The high brightness / high flux source may then be coupled to an x-ray reflecting optical system, which can focus the high flux x-rays to a spots that can be as small as one micron, leading to high flux density, and used to illuminate materials for the analysis based on their scattering / diffractive effects.

This disclosure presents systems for x-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) measurements that have x-ray flux and flux density several orders of magnitude greater than existing compact systems. These are useful for laboratory or field applications of x-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (XANES) or extended x-ray fine absorption structure (EXFAS) spectroscopy. The higher brightness is achieved by using designs for x-ray targets that comprise a number of aligned microstructures of x-ray generating materials fabricated in close thermal contact with a substrate having high thermal conductivity. This allows for bombardment with higher electron density and / or higher energy electrons, leading to greater x-ray brightness and high flux. The high brightness x-ray source is then coupled to an x-ray reflecting optical system to collimate the x-rays, and a monochromator, which selects the exposure energy. Absorption spectra of samples using the high flux monochromatic x-rays can be made using standard detection techniques.

We disclose a compact source for high brightness x-ray generation. The higher brightness is achieved through electron beam bombardment of multiple regions aligned with each other to achieve a linear accumulation of x-rays. This may be achieved by aligning discrete x-ray sources, or through the use of novel x-ray targets that comprise a number of microstructures of x-ray generating materials fabricated in close thermal contact with a substrate with high thermal conductivity. This allows heat to be more efficiently drawn out of the x-ray generating material, and in turn allows bombardment of the x-ray generating material with higher electron density and / or higher energy electrons, leading to greater x-ray brightness.The orientation of the microstructures allows the use of an on-axis collection angle, allowing the accumulation of x-rays from several microstructures to be aligned to appear to have a single origin, also known as “zero-angle” x-ray emission.

An improved x-ray generation system produces a converging or diverging radiation pattern particularly suited for substantially cylindrical or spherical treatment devices. In an embodiment, the system comprises a closed or concave outer wall about a closed or concave inner wall. An electron emitter is situated on the inside surface of the outer wall, while a target film is situated on the outside surface of the inner wall. An extraction voltage at the emitter extracts electrons which are accelerated toward the inner wall by an acceleration voltage. Alternately, electron emission may be by thermionic means. Collisions of electrons with the target film causes x-ray emission, a substantial portion of which is directed through the inner wall into the space defined within. In an embodiment, the location of the emitter and target film are reversed, establishing a reflective rather than transmissive mode for convergent patterns and a transmissive mode for divergent patterns.

This disclosure presents systems for x-ray diffraction / scattering measurements that have x-ray flux and x-ray flux density several orders of magnitude greater than existing x-ray technologies. These may therefore be useful for applications such as structural analysis and crystallography.The higher brightness is achieved in part by using designs for x-ray targets that comprise a number of microstructures of one or more selected x-ray generating materials fabricated in close thermal contact with a substrate having high thermal conductivity. This allows for bombardment of the targets with higher electron density or higher energy electrons, which leads to greater x-ray brightness and therefore greater x-ray flux.The high brightness / high flux source may then be coupled to an x-ray reflecting optical system, which can focus the high flux x-rays to a spots that can be as small as one micron, leading to high flux density.

An x-ray imaging system has an x-ray source having an electron field emission source that emits an x-ray beam that strikes an elongated, stationary anode in an evacuated housing. A magnetic deflection system steers the electron beam between the electron field emission source and the anode, so that the electron beam can strike the anode at different locations, thereby causing x-rays to be emitted from those different locations, by controlling the degree of magnetic deflection. A radiation detector detects the x-rays after attenuation by an examination subject, and generates signals dependent on the detected radiation that represent an image of the subject.

The present invention refers to X-ray tubes for use in imaging applications with an improved power rating and, more particularly, to a multi-segment anode target (102′) for an X-ray based scanner system using an X-ray tube of the rotary anode type, said X-ray tube comprising a rotatably supported essentially disk-shaped rotary anode (102) with an anode target (102′) for emitting X-radiation when being exposed to an electron beam (105a) incident on a surface of said anode target (102′), wherein said rotary anode disk (102) is divided into at least two anode disk segments (102a and 102b) with each of said anode disk segments having a conical surface inclined by a distinct acute angle (α) with respect to a plane normal to the rotational axis (103a) of said rotary anode disk (102) and thus having its own focal track width. A control unit for pulsing the electron beam (105a) is provided which is adapted for pulsing the electron beam (105a) such that the electron beam has a duty cycle which takes on its switched on state only when incident on a selectable anode disk segment (102a or 102b) with an inclination angle (α) from a given angular range or on a anyone from a selectable set of these anode disk segments (102a or 102b). Controlling the electron beam's pulse sequence thereby allows to select the optimal segment of the focal spot track (106b) with the smallest possible inclination angle (α) dependent on the angular size (β) of a desired field of view and helps to achieve a maximum brightness of the focal spot (106) as well as a maximized power rating. An advantage of the invention consists in an enhanced image quality compared to conventional rotary anodes as known from the prior art.

This disclosure presents systems for x-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) measurements that have x-ray flux and flux density several orders of magnitude greater than existing compact systems. These are useful for laboratory or field applications of x-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (XANES) or extended x-ray fine absorption structure (EXFAS) spectroscopy.The higher brightness is achieved by using designs for x-ray targets that comprise a number of aligned microstructures of x-ray generating materials fabricated in close thermal contact with a substrate having high thermal conductivity. This allows for bombardment with higher electron density and / or higher energy electrons, leading to greater x-ray brightness and high flux.The high brightness x-ray source is then coupled to an x-ray reflecting optical system to collimate the x-rays, and a monochromator, which selects the exposure energy. Absorption spectra of samples using the high flux monochromatic x-rays can be made using standard detection techniques.

A compact, reliable scanning electron-beam x-ray source achieves reduced complexity and cost. In particular, the x-ray source includes an electron beam that is propagated parallel to an x-ray target and is swept across the target in response to a moving magnetic cross field. Rather than scanning the beam by deflecting it about a single point, the point of deflection is translated along the target length, dramatically reducing the volume of the device. The magnetic cross field is translated along the target length using either mechanical systems to move permanent magnets, or electrical systems to energize an array of electromagnets.

The present invention is directed toward an X-ray scanner that has an electron source and an anode. The anode has a target surface with a series of material areas spaced along it in a scanning direction. The material areas are formed from different materials. The electron source is arranged to direct electrons at a series of target areas of the target surface, in a predetermined order, so as to generate X-ray beams having different energy spectra.

An x-ray target pedestal assembly and a method of protecting the x-ray target from breaking down as a result of the extreme heat that is produced when an electron beam is aimed at the target to produce x-rays. The target is submerged in cooling fluid and is rotated by a constant flow of the cooling fluid over and around the target in order to dissipate heat. The fluid is guided by integrated flow diverters in the target cover. The target may also be protectively coated either in its entirety or along the electron beam path in order to further protect it from the heat of the electron beam impact or from breakdown as a result of attack of free radicals or other chemically reactive components of the cooling fluid which are produced in the extreme target environment.